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Thursday, January 31, 2013

Okay, we are getting closer and closer to that March 18 premiere date for Season 16 of Dancing with the Stars. The rumors are out there, let's see who is definitely out and who might be in. Remember, we don't have any confirmations yet.

NO:Lindsay Lohan: While this gal could use the money and she surely could use the career boost, Lindsay won't be stepping on any dance floor any time soon. If you have been following her recent court case, Lindsay will begin her next trial on March 18th. Oh, guess what show premieres that day?

Lance Armstrong: I believe this is a name ABC pursued pretty heavily. His story is legendary in a not-so-good way, but DWTS might be a good place to start his comeback. However, I think Armstrong has said his peace to Oprah and he is now going to step away from the media for a time. Remember, he has a lot of personal relationships to heal before he ever steps back into the public arena.

MAYBE:Emily Maynard: ABC is very loyal to their reality stars and they have utilized Maynard for two rounds of the The Bachelor franchise. Don't doubt for a minute that they are at least thinking about using her for DWTS. She is a polarizing figure, but people would tune into watch her.

Katherine Webb: She's the hottest pop culture figure these days thanks to Brent Musburger and the BCS championship game. We will see her reporting for Inside Edition at Super Bowl LXVII and in the swimsuit issue for Sports Illustrated plus she's starring in ABC's new celebrity diving show called Splash. Webb has made no secret about the fact that she wants to hit DWTS next....stay tuned.

The Fierce Five: A few of the team members talked about wanting to star on the show after their appearance on the Season 15 finale. We chatted with Jordyn Wieber on Afterbuzz TV's DWTS after show and she mentioned how much she would love to do the show. Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, and McKayla Maroney also expressed interest in the show. If I was going to pick one from the gold medal-winning team, my money is on Maroney for a few reasons. One, she's focusing on an acting career. Two, she's local to the Southern California area.

Things we know for sure:

1. The show will be back for two seasons per year.

That's it! We need to know more. If you have any insider scoop, send your tips here.

Who do you think will be on the show? Any other rumors? Where are all of the men--no rumors yet?Chime in the comments below.If you missed my fan chat with Henry Byalikov, you can check it out below. I will have Henry back on along with Teagan Lowe on Tuesday, February 26 at 5pm PT/8pm ET, so mark your calendars!

Monday, January 28, 2013

Totally excited by my new iPad Mini to carry me through the rest of awards season.

Last week felt busy and not so busy all at once. Does that make sense? It was rainy in LA and a lot of my work involved my laptop, writing, broadcasting, and sitting on the couch. I wore pj bottoms and then would have to do hair, makeup, and wear a cute shirt for my Spreecasts. I was a hot mess of contradictions.

Here's what happened in the media last week.

Full spread of lobster, caviar, and truffle mac and cheese at 9am.

Governors Ball Preview: If you missed my coverage of the Governors Ball Preview--the official party of the Oscars, head here.

Slamdance Film Festival: If you want to see my fun interviews with the filmmakers of Slamdance, click here.

Kate Danley: I had the opportunity to interview author, Kate Danley, who has done extremely well with her fantasy-genre novel, The Woodcutter. She gave me the inside scoop on big and small screen plans for the book as well as Maggie for Hire. You can watch the Spreecast below:

Tom Barnard Podcast: Holy cow! This was a crazy show. Tom had comedian Steve White on the show and I am not sure I got a word in edgewise. That's okay, White ruled the show....he's funny. Listen at the 20:00 mark.

Metro News Hotline with Dave Weekley: I am proud to announced that I am joining the WCHS family in West Virginia on Mondays at 1:30pm PT/4:30pm ET for a weekly entertainment segment.
You will be able to listen live here.

SAG Awards: I may never do this again, but I revealed my votes for the nominees in the movie categories. I then broke down the red carpet with my Top 11 thoughts. Finally, you can watch my Spreecast with James Molnar of The Gold Knight about what the SAG wins mean to the Oscars.

The Radio Dish: Oh My! This was one hilarious appearance. We talked about the lack of underwear in Hollywood and Jon Hamm's uhhhhh.....gifts? Check it out.

I also hit the press junket for Safe Haven with Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough, but those interviews will hit the week of Valentine's Day. You have 3 opportunities to join me today:1:30pm Metro News Hotline with Dave Weekley5:00pm Spreecast with DWTS Troupe Member Henry Byalikov6:35pm Driving with Gass on KWSS.org

All times are PT. Hope to hear from you at one of my media appearances!

Sunday, January 27, 2013

It's my annualTop Thoughts about the SAG Awards--this year, you get 11! It was a strange red carpet..what happened to poor Giuliana Rancic during the E! Red Carpet show?...total meltdown. It was a bizarre night, but one that brought lots of snarky comments. Here we go!

2. Julia Stiles: When did Julia Stiles become a Midwestern housewife? You are 31, get out there, be young, show off your figure, and get a new hairdo.

3. Bradley Cooper: I'm not a fan of scruff on men, but I like Bradley Cooper better with a little stubble. He looks naked without it.

4. Ariel Winter: I've had to cover her custody case story a lot over the last six months. I've interviewed her many times. She's lovely. I'm so happy to hear she's thriving and doing really well under her older sister's watchful eye. She deserves a happy childhood.

5. Julianne Moore: Just because you are at the SAG Awards, doesn't mean you bring the SAG with you. Who dressed her? (As of 2012, it was Leslie Fremar.) For shame.

6. Amanda Seyfried: I love her. She's snarky in interviews. I can't wait to sit one-on-one with her in the future...when snark meets snark. Best Dressed of the night. Gorgeous Zac Posen dress in the color of the night: navy blue.

7. Marion Cotillard: She had the flu. The next time I have the flu, I want to look like this. Stunning in Christian Dior.

8. January Jones: My awards season posts are NOTHING without a mention of January. She styles herself, kids. She's always a wild card, but I think she looks pretty tame compared to this or this. Dressed in Prabal Gurung. Thoughts?

10. Kiernan Shipka: I feel like a proud momma. I interviewed her when she was 10 years old. Here she is at 13...all grown up. Sweet girl with tons of talent. Oh yeah, barely a teen and in Oscar de la Renta!

11. Kaley Cuoco: My mop broke. I know where it wound up. On her head. What the???

Okay, give me your thoughts, I want to know what you have to say!Below is my Spreecast with James Molnar discussing the SAG Awards results and what it means to the Oscars,

Normally, I wouldn't do this, but I think it's been such an interesting awards season race. With The Academy changing the timeline of the entire season by announcing the nominations on January 10 this year, it created a ripple effect that has been felt through every show since. From the Critics Choice Awards to the Golden Globes to last night's Producer's Guild Awards, the crammed nominations period has left many pundits scrambling to guess a few categories. Normally, we know exactly who is going to win come Oscar night by now. I love that a few categories still remain open.

When I voted for the SAG Awards on Thursday night, I even surprised myself with some of my choices. A couple were purely emotional reactions to the film and performance, so I don't believe all of my choices will win. So will win and should win, while I think others got left behind by stronger campaigns....not necessarily by stronger performances.

I'm just going to talk about the movie categories even though SAG is honoring TV as well on Sunday.

Here were my picks for the SAG Awards:

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture:Argo

I know all bets are on Lincoln in this category and the performances in this movie were excellent. However, I've said this all season long, Steven Spielberg is not my favorite director. He makes important films, but I feel like I'm being told as an audience member that it is important and I don't like that. Argo took me more on an adventure and the juxtaposition between what was happening with Alan Arkin and John Goodman in Hollywood versus Ben Affleck and company in Iran had me riveted the entire time. Argo wins my vote. Will it win overall? Hmmm, I would be surprised. I think the SAG voting body is going with Lincoln. (I wrote this before the PGA Awards were given out and Argo won last night. It makes me think that SAG could go the same way, especially after talking to a few SAG voters. So here's a good question: Did the Best Director Oscar nomination snub work in Argo's favor?)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
John Hawkes, The Sessions

This was a purely emotional vote. I admit it. He's one of my favorite actors year in, year out. From Winter's Bone to Martha, Marcy, May, Marlene, I just find him interesting. I loved his portrayal of Mark O'Brien and his true story of finding love even though his body works a little differently than the most of us. It was a beautiful tale and I loved the sweetness between Hawkes and Helen Hunt. I'm sorry to see he wasn't nominated for an Oscar this year. He won't win the SAG Award. This is Daniel Day-Lewis' award, hands down.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Naomi Watts, The Impossible

Okay, I think Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence were both excellent in their respective films, but nothing moved me more this Oscar season than Naomi Watts. I was haunted by her performance for days after watching The Impossible. I'm kind of flabbergasted that she isn't in the mix more for that Oscar this year. In the meantime, Chastain and Lawrence are running neck and neck for the Academy Award. The SAG Award will clarify who will probably go home with that gold statuette on February 24th.

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Alan Arkin, Argo

I first checked off Javier Bardem for Skyfall. That was completely a wrong choice. This category is so strong and everyone is so good in their roles. No Christoph Waltz to mess with the equation for the SAG Awards, so it will probably be Tommy Lee Jones for Lincoln. I honestly won't be upset if anyone wins in this category, that's how tight the race is. Arkin just made me love Argo that much more. He won't win, but he got my vote.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Anne Hathaway, Les Misérables

Even though she annoyed me at the Golden Globes by hijacking the Les Mis acceptance speech, I really did love her performance in the film. This film received so much criticism, but I saw it early before opinions had been formed. I think she created such sorrow and pain in Fantine and mark my words.....no one else is going home with that Oscar in this category. As good as Sally Field is, it's not going to happen.

Now, I realize some of my choices are nothing more than pipe dreams, but I voted more for who I wanted to win this year. Other years, I have voted with who was going to win because the field was locked in so early.

What do you think is going to happen at the SAG Awards? I would love to hear your thoughts...chime in below!

I will also be hosting a Spreecast immediately following the show at 7:15pm PT/10:15pm ET. James Molnar of the Toledo Free Press and Gold Knight Blog will be joining me for our immediate reactions. RSVP and join us live here.Disclosure: Clearly, I'm a SAG member who voted in this year's race. I checked the rules of the SAG Awards and nothing in the rulebook prevents me from revealing who I voted for. It's probably the only time I will do this, but I thought it might be interesting to get into the mind of a voter during a surprising season. I chose not to reveal my TV votes, so at least some of my ballot remained private.

Friday, January 25, 2013

Last night I was privileged to talk to some of the filmmakers who were showing their work at Slamdance this year. Slamdance runs during the same time period as the Sundance Film Festival as a place "For Filmmakers, By Filmmakers." It was started two decades ago, as an alternative for indie filmmakers to have a place to go after Sundance became so commercial. Some well known films have come out of Slamdance including Paranormal Activity, Mad Hot Ballroom, and The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters.

Take a look at the next crop of filmmakers with my interviews below. I'm keeping my eye on Nicole Teeny and her documentary Bible Quiz. It won the doc category and the subject matter fascinates me even though I would completely fail any quiz on the Bible. I just love the art of competition. Check out the trailer here.

The interviews:

Have a great weekend! Winners of the Metric CD giveaway are announced here.

Thursday, January 24, 2013

While I have covered highlights of the Governors Ball the week of the Oscars, this is the first year I was invited to cover the preview that happens in the actual ballroom. The committee sets up about a quarter of the room to give you an idea of what it will look like for celebrities like George Clooney, Anne Hathaway, and Jennifer Lawrence on Oscar night. The chandelier alone that changes colors from moment to moment to create a really cool atmosphere. If you saw my photo on Facebook, you know that I looked like I was in Oz. A minute later when we took the photo of my cameraman, AJ, it was orange.

The food by Wolfgang Puck is always delicious from the Kobe Beef Sliders to the Smoky Tuna Tartare, it's just delicious. However, watch the video below, we catch him wiping his nose. Ew.

Finally, I was lucky enough to make the official cocktail sponsored by Patrón. It shows that I have no backup plan in my career because I make a terrible bartender. So, I better keep at this entertainment reporting thing. I drank wine, champagne, and tequila all before 11am. It was quite nice.

My article for Starpulse, along with the videos, will be a feature this weekend, so I will update it here later this week.

Look at how excited I am to dive into a cocktail at 10am. It was delicious!

If you are free tonight, please join me LIVE on Spreecast at 7:30pm PT/10:30pm ET as I interview the nominees from the 2013 Slamdance Awards. The lucky nominees are in Park City, Utah while I will broadcasting from rainy LA. RSVP here.Last chance to enter my Metric CD giveaway! You have a REALLY good chance to win because I have multiple copies to give away. Enter here.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Are you guys ready for another week? I sure am because this week I'm checking out the Governors Ball decor and food in the actual ballroom where all the celebs party after the Oscars. It's the first time I've ever covered this event, so I'm am so excited. I have done some coverage in the past the week of the Oscars, but it's never in the ballroom since it's too close to showtime. Let me know if you have any questions for Wolfgang Puck, he will be there cooking up some delightful treats.

Also, if hit the home page, you will notice I did a little 2013 makeover for the blog. Let me know what you think of the layout. I want to do more with it, but for now I think it gives it a fresher look and it's easier to find old posts if you missed them.

Finally, a big THANK YOU to all of you. This weekend, I had the highest views ever on my blog since I came online in 2009. I am so excited to meet new friends (Be sure to say "hi" in the comments below.) and I truly appreciate my friends that have been here since the beginning. Tell me what you would like to see in 2013 here on Red Carpet Closet because without you, I wouldn't be able to do my job and bring you all the insight from Behind the Red Carpet.

Now, on to Media Mondays:

Hyundai: I have been fortunate to host their internet shows from locales like New York, LA, and now, Detroit. It's been such a thrill to work with the Hyundai and CDG team to bring this show to life. Everything is live, so you never know what will happen. This time, we did a behind the scenes look of the booth, so it gave viewers at home an idea of how big the Detroit show actually is. Take a look here or see a photo of the event here.

Spreecast: My fellow entertainment reporter, Lindsay Hoffman, and I chatted about this week's hottest Hollywood stories. She's sitting on a big story that breaks on Wednesday while I dished about the rumor that Jessica Simpson is supposedly having a boy. Check out the archive below if you want the latest scoop on Britney, Lindsay, Rihanna, and Demi....Lovato, not Moore.

Tom Barnard Podcast: Tom and I agreed this week about Spielberg and his films. If you are following the Oscars race, you might want to hear our opinions on this one.

Dara on Radio: I occasionally stop by Dara's show throughout the year. Last week, I chatted about the Golden Globes and the differences between the awards shows. I will be back on her show January 29th and March 5th, but, in the meantime, you can check out the archived show here.

More photos from IAWTV Awards. Photo courtesy of Brenda White.

The Radio Dish: Fun highlights from the Golden Globes with the ladies in Kansas City. I come in at the 20-minute mark. Lots of snark going on this week...lots.

Don't forget to enter my Metric CD giveaway here.Tonight is #RadioBurtt night at 6:35pm PT/9:35pm ET on KWSS.org on the Driving with Gass show. I'll kick off your week with the latest in entertainment news. See you there!

Friday, January 18, 2013

I know so many of you out there are fans of the show Fringe which didn't get all of the ratings and praise it deserved during its five season run. I had the pleasure of interviewing some of the cast at the 36th and 37th Annual Saturn Awards and they couldn't be nicer. Here's a little tribute to the show and its cast. My interviews with Anna Torv, Lance Reddick, and John Noble.

Thanks for a great five seasons! Watch the two-hour finale tonight on FOX at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

We are 17 days into the new year and I think a good way to start 2013 is with a giveaway. Let's set the right tone for everyone with a little fun, a little treat, and a little music! If you remember back in November, I was fortunate enough to spend a week with the Acura ILX Hybrid. It was great to test drive another manufacturer's hybrid system and get spoiled with a bit of luxury.

Acura also followed up with CDs for me to give away to all of you. They sponsor the Canadian indie rock band Metric, so I have 10 of their CDs to give away. I think you will love their album "Synthetica."

I love the way Metric's lead singer, Emily Haines, describes their album, "[It's] about forcing yourself to confront what you see in the mirror when you finally stand still long enough to catch a reflection."

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Hello, Chris Hardwick....young kids know him from his YouTube Nerdist channel. Older kids know him from MTV's Singled Out with Jenny McCarthy.

Well, we can't always be on time, can we? I am finally getting to this post on a Tuesday after hopping on a few planes to cover events in Las Vegas, LA, and Detroit. I was all over the place, but I had a whole lot of fun. Take a look at some of the events I covered last week:

IAWTV Awards: I was grateful to be nominated with my fantastic co-host, AJ Gibson, for our AfterBuzz TV show of So You Think You Can Dance. We had so much fun in Vegas. It was also nice to be back on the red....uh, blue carpet interviewing the nominees for IAWTV. Thanks to the Academy for giving me that opportunity. For my fashionistas, my dress info is here.

Oscar Nominations: I then ran home on Wednesday to cover the Oscar Nominations for Starpulse. All of my coverage is here. Watch the Leonard Maltin interview. He gives some great insight on the Oscars race.

Cocktails and Conversation: I am back for a special episode to talk about....you guessed it..Oscar Nominations! Robin also won the Oscar Nominations Dress Challenge this year. She's going to get a $25 gift certificate to the store of her choice....once she tells me the store of her choice! Listen here.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

I've been live-snarking the Golden Globes all night long. You can catch up on Twitter or see my Top 10 thoughts on the Globes here:

1. Anne Hathaway: I've said it all season long and I am a supporter of her performance in Les Mis, but I think she's trying too hard. She's acting like this big underdog and she's not. Anne is a young, talented A-List actress who is on her way to winning her first Academy Award. I wish her acceptance speeches came from an authentic place....instead of jumping up to the mic to give another shout out during the Les Mis win. Sorry, your moment already happened. UGH. Don't make me change my SAG Awards vote for you. Rant over. (Although her Sally Field tribute was nice....and sincere.)By the way, I am hearing baby bump rumors about Anne. Could she be pregnant?

2. Ryan Seacrest: This photo made me realize he is dying his hair hard core. He looks really old next to Julianne Hough because of the bad dye job....and while Ryan isn't 25, he certainly isn't old. He makes $15 million a year from American Idol alone, stop dying your hair from the box.

3. Claire Danes: I've tried so hard to like Homeland, but I can't get into it. I'm in the minority on that show, so let's talk about how amazing you look. You had a baby less than 30 days ago. Wow! Dress by Versace.

4. Taylor Swift: I'm over her songs about ex-boyfriends, but THIS look is good for her. She usually dresses like a fluffy kitten in pastels. This is fierce. It looks like she's laying down the law, no more ex-boyfriends like John Mayer, Jake Gyllenhaal or Harry Styles. Dress by Donna Karan Atelier.

5. Halle Berry: She's beautiful, but she has rocked this look for years. I think it's time for a makeover.....new red carpet style. It's so boring now. It's pretty, but it's boring.

6. Jodie Foster: I'm pretty sure she officially came out during her Cecil B. DeMille speech. This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. She did it in her own way. I also have to say that 50 looks fabulous. Wow!

7. Ben Affleck: I've been talking all week about your Oscar snub. The voting members of The Academy made a big mistake. Last night proved it. I think your film is way more interesting than Steven Spielberg's Lincoln.

8. Lena Dunham: She's exactly what Hollywood needs right now. She sends a great message to young girls everywhere: Be who you are, be unique, and let your talents shine through.

9. Amy Poehler and Tina Fey: They were very funny, but I wanted to see more of them. Just sending that thought out to Hollywood Foreign Press and Dick Clark Productions.

10. Bill Clinton: I've met him twice. I don't care what your politics are.....he's still the most popular man in the room. Yep, he even trumps George Clooney. No one has more charisma. No one.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Well, the longest day of the year has officially come and gone. Yep, Oscar Nominations Day is always a fun, but tough day to get through. This year, I woke up at 1:30am so I could get to the theatre in time to set up at 3am. By 4am, I was happily eating bacon and a Jamba Juice in preparation for the big announcements. (By the way, Jamba Juice and Coffee Bean sponsored the beverages this morning. That's a first and it was totally appreciated.)

No heels until showtime. A girl has to be comfy at 4am.

As always, the nominations came at a fast and furious pace for a total of 8 minutes. Seth MacFarlane and Emma Stone were completely charming and I am excited for Seth's hosting gig. Then the nominations came and wow!..... there some major snubs.

It's great catching up with old friends. Megan Telles fromABC Las Vegas.

This year, after giving my video assessment with The Academy's nominations, I was lucky enough to interview legendary film critic Leonard Maltin and the executive producers for this year's show, Neil Meron and Craig Zadan. The producing duo gave me some great inside scoop on what to expect for this year's show.

The dress was $74.99 retail, but I used Ebates to get additional money off.

The Dress: This was the winning dress! Congrats to Robin who picked this "Luck Be a Lady" dress from Modcloth. It fit like a glove and the PR team from Modcloth agreed after they saw my photo on Twitter. Robin gets a $25 gift certificate to the store of her choice. (By the way, I added a thicker belt versus the skinny belt the dress came with to slim down my waistline on camera.)

As for the Shabby Apple dress, Jennifer picked a beautiful dress for me. However, the one that was sent to me was not the champagne color, it was gray. The lining of the dress didn't match up with the lace, so it was poorly constructed. I was pretty disappointed in the overall quality. So, Jennifer has great taste, I just wish the Shabby Apple dress was exactly the same as what we saw online. The good news is that Jennifer can relish in the fact that she won the popular vote. Her pick received 58% of the vote.